Press tool



March 16, 1948 E. ENGEL ET AL PRESS TOOL 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed July 23, 1946 Inventors A Home March 16, 1948.

E. ENGEL ET AL I 2,437,945

PRESS TOOL Filed July 23, 1946 ZSheetS-Sheet 2 Fig.7. 215

\\i :i: W 161 Byslfwn fs Attorney Patented Mar. 16, 1948 PRESS TOOL Erich Engel, Tonteg, near Pontypridd, and Maks Salamon,

company Cardifl', Wale Fasteners Limited, Lo

s, assignors to Aero Zipp ndon, England, a British Application July 23, 1946, Serial No. 685,752 In Great Britain December 18, 1944 This invention relates to improvements in press tools, and especially to small press tools used in the manufacture of small articles such as press-buttons, parts of watches, fastener elements for sliding clasp fasteners.

Such articles are commonly manufactured from strip stock by feeding the stock through a press where it is operated on by press tools to punch out and form the articles from the stock. It is customary to manufacture a number of these small articles simultaneously per stroke of the press, and for this purpose to employ a combination tool haw'ng a number of punches, stamps or similar tool parts. In view of the smallness of the articles, the punches or the like are correspondingly small, and in order to fix such small tool parts in the tool head of the press, it has been customary hitherto to position them in a recess in a tool head and to set them inposition by a low melting point filling material or solder which is run molten into the recess and caused or allowed to set. The material commonly employed is a metal solder having a melting point below 200 C. for example in the neighborhood of 100 C. This method of fixing the tool parts in the tool head has the disadvantage that it is not easy to replace the tool parts as they become broken or worn. These very small punches or the like are subjected to considerable wear and need frequent replacement; also, some may be subjected to greater wear than others and on this account may need more frequent attention, apart from replacement due to breakages which, it may be pointed out, may occur with some of the punches or the like and not with others. Therefore, whenever the tool or any one of the punches or the like tool parts thereof needs attention or replacement, the press must be stopped and kept idle, while the filling material in the recess of the tool head is melted to enable the punches or the like to be removed from the tool head. Similar delay also occurs in resetting the punches or the like in the tool head. These delays slow production and increase costs.

To overcome its disadvantages, it has previously been proposed instead of setting the punches, stamps or similar tool parts of a press tool directly into the tool head recess as previously practiced to set the tool parts with the fusible solder or other filling material into a carrier, such as a hardened steel frame or block, which is adapted to be fitted to the tool head or in a recess of the tool head, by means, permitting the carrier with the tool parts set therein to be replaced. It is an object of the present invention to provide partica 1 Claim. (01. 164-124) and tool part assembly for another. The press is not held up for melting out the tool parts and setting them in the filling material, because with the provision of the tool carrier this work can be done away from the press, thus freeing it for production.

The invention also consists in a method of fixing tool parts to a carrier for use in a press tool,

comprising the steps of inserting a portion of each tool part into one of a plurality of cavities,

such as holes or recesses, in a master positioning plate so that another portion of each tool part protrudes from the respective cavity, placing a carrier having at least one cavity against the positioning plate in proper alignment thereto so that at least one protruding portion of a tool part is surrounded by the cavity in the carrier, filling the cavity in the carrier with a liquefied solder or other filling material, allowing the solder or the like to solidify, whereby to fix the tool parts to the carrier, and removing the carrier and the tool parts fixed thereto from the positioning plate.

To make the invention clearly understood, reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings which are somewhat diagrammatical and are given by way of example only, and in which:

Fig. 1 is a side view of a first embodiment of a tool carrier carrying three punches and three stamps;

Fig. 2 is a section along the line IIII of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a plan view of a tool head with the tool carrier illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2 attached thereto;

Fig- 4 illustrates another embodiment of the invention, the tool carrier being provided with three tool parts; and

Figs. 5, 6, and 7 illustrate the manner in which the tool parts may be attached to the carrier, only two tool parts being shown for simplicity.

In all the figures, the same parts are indicated by the same reference numerals.

Referring first to Figs. 1 to 3, a tool head I is formed with a recess 2 therein which is closed by a bridge plate 3 screwed to the main body of the tool head by screws 4. A tool carrier block 5 fits into the recess 2 and is held therein by the bridge plate 3. A plurality of punches B and stamps Bl (three in the drawings) are set with fusible solder or other filling material 1 into the recessed. carrierblock 5. withmthearrangement illustrated, an easy and rapid exchangeability 20f the tool carrier 5 and assembly of punches 6 and stamps BI is achieved.

Fig. 4 illustrates a press tool having a tool head It! attached to a support or upper part of. a'idie-' set ll adapted to be moved v,upand down in vany suitable known manner. ThesupportH-isg'uided by guide-bars l2, and the-.tool-headilmisguided in a chamber l3. By means of screws" l4 extending through the tool head ii), a tool carrier I5 is releasably attached to the toolshead' lllfi io the tool carrier Hi, the tool parts l6 are-attached=by means of a fusible solder or other fillingmaterial, the tool parts 16 co-operating with complementary..matrices ll. v.,It..w,ill be, recognized that, again,- an -.easy.. and rapid exchangeability "of the toolcarrier Ll Stand the, assembly Iof'tool parts 'I 6 :is achieved. I

. In iorderito secure accurate positioning oftthe ...,tool..parts in the carrier'whenfixingthemthere- .2 IV thereinandis placed .on the positioning plate 20 so that the hole 2| in the frame surrounds the tool parts 16 l ,the frame, being. correctlymposi- UtiQnecLereIatively .to'the, tool parts l6lby the "chamber .13 -.(see."Fig. "6). Subsequently, the ..,solder -.or.theilike. material is, while heated and "liquid, .poured intolthe hole '21, of the/carrier l5 .so as .to surroundthelshanksiofj the tool parts?! 6| and,'.thus, ,t0 securethe tool parts lfil to'thecar- ,rier-Jfi .when' the solder or the. likehassolidified, .whereupon;the ..carrier l5 with the assembly of .tool parts l6 lifix'ed thereto by the" solder-'22. is

. removed. from the: .chamber- 13, is, :if desiried, ,;.,smo.othed'-.at .its upper surface and is .re'ady'ior dattachm-entto thectool head "I ll of the press.

4 While the invention is particularly useful in the manufacture of press buttons, parts of watches, fastener elements for sliding clasp fasteners, it will be apparent that it has application..also to. other manufactures where some- 'whattisimilar problems may,.arise owing to the employment of small tools.

i It should be clearly understood that we do T not wish our invention to be limited to the specific lloiembodiments illustrated in the accompanying drawings, since. many modifications, omissions t.:and-'additionsi.are possible and may readily occur to.ithose..'.sl ill'ed;.in the art, Without departure from the.s.cope..and spirit of our invention.

We claim: 2154 press'tooi comprising a plurality of tool parts,

- acarrierjthe said tool parts being set into said carrier by a fusible filling material, a tool head provided with a recess for receiving said carrier,

a bridge plate, .and means for releasably attaching said bridge plateto said tool headto close "the'recessin'said' tool head and thereby to clamp the said carrier, to 'said-tool' head whereby the said carrier 'withtheztool parts set therein is easily. and quickly "replaceable.

ERICH ENGEL. MAKS SALAMON.

-REFER7ENCES" CITED The following vreferencesare of record in .thc

.file of this patent:

. UNII'ED- STATES- PATENTS Number IName Date 409,324 .Hill Aug. 20, 1889 ,.'.433,003 Hill July 29, 1890 $454,618 "Gaiger June 23, 1891 3186358 TCummins Nov. 29, 1892 1,070,887 .ZLI-Iartog Aug. 19, 1913 -,1,9,9'l,292 I Boker Apr. 7 9,1935 12,395,082 .Wi1son Febvl 1946 2,395,083 Wilson Feb. 1 1946 Q'EHER-1REFERENCES 1'. CerromatrixmManual .(40 Wall St, NewYork, 

